Bobbin

ABSTRACT

A bobbin in which the free end of a coil of thread is held in place by a body of thermoplastic material.

United States Patent 151 3,693,906 Robinson 1 Sept. 26, 1972 1 BOBBIN FOREIGN PATENTS R APPLICATIONS [721 A-hbimmi'monmss- 454,555 /1936 Great Britain ..242/l64 [73] Assignee: The Robinson Thread Co., Inc., 971,528 9/1964 Great Britain 242/165 Worcester, Mass.

Filed: Aug. 2, 197] App]. No.: 168,142

US. Cl. ...............242/l59, 242/125.2, 242/164, 206/46 Y Int. Cl. .1365]! /00 Field of Selrch......242/l64, 165, I59, 172, 173, 242/l8 EW, 125, l25.l, [25.2, 125.3;

206/46 Y, 59 R, 59 A References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1957 Hess ..242/l Primary Examiner-Stanley N. Gilreath Attorney- Norman S. Blodgett 57] ABSTRACT A bobbin in which the free end of a coil of thread is held in place by a body of thermoplastic material.

5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figures mmmms m2 3593306 FIG! FIG. 2

STUART A ROBINSON IN VE N TOR,

uoaam BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the manufacture of a bobbin of thread for the textile industry, the problem of holding the free end of the thread, so that the thread does not uncoil until it is to be used, is a difficult one. In the past, it has been common practice to slit the flange of the bobbin and to jam the free end of the thread into the slit, to rescue the loose end by tucking a loop of the loose end under one or more threads previously wound on the bobbin. Whichever way is used, this method suffers from the disability that the thread often comes loose during shipping, packing, and handling, so that a particular bobbin may become unwound and useless. These and other difficulties experienced with the prior art devices have been obviated in a novel manner by the present invention.

It is, therefore, an outstanding object of the invention to provide a bobbin in which the free end is held securely so it will not unravel during packing, shipping, and handling.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a bobbin in which the flanges are uninterrupted by a slit or the like so that it cannot catch on machinery and so on.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a bobbin having a means for holding the thread or allowing the free end to be available for grasping, which means does not affect the thread during use.

With these and other objects in view, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of parts set forth in the specification and covered by the claims appended hereto.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In general, the invention consists of a bobbin having a reel with spaced, parallel radial flanges and a main coil of thread wound on the reel between the flanges. A small body of plastic material connects a part of the thread adjacent the end to the main coil so as to leave the end free. More specifically, the body is formed of a thermoplastic material and is located midway between the flanges.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The character of the invention, however, may be best understood by reference to one of its structural forms, as illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. I is a perspective view of a bobbin embodying the principles of the present invention, and

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the bobbin taken on the line II-II of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIG. 1, wherein is best shown the general features of the invention, the bobbin, indicated generally by the reference numeral 10, is shown as being provided with a reel ll having spaced parallel radial flanges l2 and 13. The main coil 14 of thread is wound on the reel between the flanges l2 and 13. The small body 15 of plastic material connects a part 16 of the thread adjacent the end 17 to the main coil 14 so as l li b ti dy i yi formed of a thermoplastic and is located midway between the flanges l2 and 13. The body is of a generally ovoid shape with the long dimension arranged circumferentially around the coil 14. The reel 11 is formed entirely of plastic and the flanges l2 and 13 are thin-walled to give them a flexible characteristic.

The operation of the invention will now be readily understood in view of the above description. The plastic 15 is applied at the time of manufacture by use of a heating gun of the well-known type. The thermoplastic body 15 holds the end 17 of the thread in place during packing, shipping, and handling. When the bobbin is to be used in an industrial sewing machine, the bobbin remains in this condition until the person using the machine is ready to load it into the sewing machine. The operator then grasps the end 17 of the thread and gives it a sharp reverse pull, thus peeling the body 15 away from the main coil 14. This has the effect of carrying the body of plastic along with the thread. Then, the user simply runs his fingers along the thread to pull the body off the free end. Because of its thermoplastic nature, the amount of the plastic left on the thread will do no harm because in its use in the sewing machine it will simply soften during use and blend into the fiber of the thread.

It can be seen, then, that by use of the present inven tion the flanges l2 and 13 are uninterrupted; therefore, the bobbin is easily handled on automatic machinery without danger of it catching or snagging on the parts found around an industrial sewing machine. There is no danger of the free end of the thread coming loose, so that the thread in the coil unwinds and makes the bobbin useless. This bobbin can be manufactured inexpensively and presents a simple solution to an age-old problem.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the form and construction of the invention without departing from the material spirit thereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to the exact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include all such as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A bobbin, comprising a. a reel having spaced parallel radial flanges,

b. a main coil thread wound on the reel between the flanges, and

c. a small body of plastic material connecting a part of the thread adjacent the end to the main coil so as to leave the end free.

2. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the body is formed of a thermoplastic.

3. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the body is located midway between the flanges.

4. A bobbin as recited in claim I, wherein the body is of a generally ovoid shape with the long dimension arranged circumferentially around the coil.

5. A bobbin as recited in claim I, wherein the reel of plastic and the flange are thin-walled to give a flexible characteristic.

IF I I l 

1. A bobbin, comprising a. a reel having spaced parallel radial flanges, b. a main coil thread wound on the reel between the flanges, and c. a small body of plastic material connecting a part of the thread adjacent the end to the main coil so as to leave the end free.
 2. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the body is formed of a thermoplastic.
 3. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the body is located midway between the flanges.
 4. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the body is of a generally ovoid shape with the long dimension arranged circumferentially around the coil.
 5. A bobbin as recited in claim 1, wherein the reel of plastic and the flange are thin-walled to give a flexible characteristic. 